Companies from Apple to the Gap have pledged to pitch in a combined $30 million if the Bay Area lands the Super Bowl in either 2016 or 2017, money that would go to cover hosting costs and affiliated charity efforts, including programs for needy young people, bid organizers said.

The fundraising is notable not only in its quantity - organizers say they've raised more money at this juncture than any other bid committee - but also for an unprecedented commitment to use 25 percent of the total on local youth poverty reduction and environmental efforts.

"CEOs are fired up," said Daniel Lurie, founder of antipoverty philanthropy clearinghouse Tipping Point and head of the Bay Area's Super Bowl bid committee. "They've been saying, 'We're happy to support this.' ... The region is excited to have its first Super Bowl in 30 years."

The $30 million at this point is in the form of written pledges for cash and in-kind contributions that will become binding if National Football League owners select the Bay Area to host either the 50th iteration of the Super Bowl in 2016 or the 51st in 2017.

The San Francisco region is competing against the Miami metropolitan area for hosting rights to the 2016 game. The losing bidder in that round will vie with Houston for the 2017 game. The 32 NFL owners are to decide on both sites at a May 21 meeting in Boston.

New stadium part of bid

If the Bay Area succeeds in landing a Super Bowl, it will be played at the $1.2 billion San Francisco 49ers stadium under construction in Santa Clara. The site was touted to NFL owners in the region's bid presentation as a high-tech, solar-powered masterpiece where fans can go cashless and paperless while ordering food from their seats.

Bid organizers estimate they'll need somewhere between $30 million and $40 million to cover the cost of hosting the game, including running the NFL Experience at San Francisco's Moscone Convention Center - essentially an indoor theme park where fans can kick field goals on a NFL-style field or tour a replica locker room. Other costs include additional events, such as a massive tailgate party, and public safety measures at the stadium on game day.

Lurie described the $30 million in commitments as "a great number" that exceeded his expectations.

"We were hoping to have half of that at this point," Lurie said. "And we're not done fundraising yet."

How that ranks with other Super Bowl bid efforts in previous years is unclear, since the NFL does not provide information on fundraising by current or previous Super Bowl bid cities.

The Bay Area committee, though, hopes the strong corporate interest will further boost a bid that also got inadvertent help from the Florida Legislature earlier this month when lawmakers failed to pass a bill that would have allowed tax revenue to pay for more than $350 million in upgrades to the aging Miami Dolphins stadium.

More than nine companies, including Google, Yahoo, Intel, HP and the 49ers themselves, have committed to donating $2 million each, payable over four years, to the Bay Area's Super Bowl host effort, bid organizers said. Apple, in addition to being on the $2 million list, also donated 40 iPad minis that held the Bay Area's formal bid presentation and were shipped to NFL owners in sleek, white acrylic cases custom engraved with the San Francisco Super Bowl logo and each owner's name.

Contrast to America's Cup

The outpouring of corporate philanthropy stands in contrast to fundraising efforts to offset San Francisco's costs for hosting the America's Cup regatta this summer and fall, where attempts to raise up to $32 million to cover public bills faltered. In February, Mayor Ed Lee stepped in to personally try to raise as much as $20 million.

Since then, projections for public costs for the America's Cup have shrunk along with the size of the event, which has a major international following but relatively low popularity in the United States.

Corporate donors, though, have been quite receptive to Lurie's pitch for money to host a Super Bowl, despite little being offered to top donors beyond a suite at the game and tickets, he said.

Part of the appeal, Lurie said, is the commitment that 1 in 4 dollars will go to local poverty reduction and sustainability efforts - a total that currently stands at $7.5 million. The NFL requirement for a Super Bowl host city is to raise $1 million for a charitable effort, dubbed a legacy project.

Exactly how the money will be spent has yet to be determined. Lurie, whose expertise is in raising money for antipoverty programs and to make them demonstrably more effective and efficient, said a separate nonprofit organization with an independent board will be formed to award the money to groups with a proven track record. None of the money will go to his organization, Tipping Point, Lurie said.

"It can't be just about passion for the game," said Lurie, citing advice he got from former 49ers star defensive back Ronnie Lott. "It's got to be about compassion for the community."